Universities welcome Foundation Dean of Kent and Medway Medical School

13 August 2018

Professor Chris Holland

The University of Kent and Canterbury Christ Church University are delighted to welcome Professor Chris Holland as the Foundation Dean of the Kent and Medway Medical School (KMMS).

Professor Holland has an extensive career in medicine and medical education, working with the national education bodies, the General Medical Council and Local Enterprise Partnerships.

Professor Rama Thirunamachandran, Vice-Chancellor of Canterbury Christ Church University, and Professor Karen Cox, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Kent, stated: “We are delighted to welcome Professor Holland as our Foundation Dean of the Kent and Medway Medical School. He has demonstrated the highest standards throughout his career whether that has been within his clinical practice or an academic setting. He has experience in leading and supporting colleagues and students throughout their medical training and brings a strong vision and commitment to medical education and patient care.”

Professor Holland was awarded his Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery from Queen’s University Belfast in 1997 and went on to gain a Master’s Degree in Medical Education from the University of Warwick. He is currently completing a Doctorate in Education at King’s College London.

He is a Fellow of the Royal College of Anaesthetists, the Faculty of Intensive Care, and the Academy of Medical Educators. He is also an elected member of the National Council of the Academy of Medical Educators and leads the Academy’s Equality and Diversity Group.

Professor Holland joins the KMMS from the University of Surrey where he was a Professorial Teaching Fellow and Director of Learning and Teaching for Medicine, responsible for learning and teaching and student experience for Medicine at the University.

He will be continuing as a Consultant in General Adult Intensive Care Medicine at King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust with the aim of moving his clinical practice to east Kent in the near future.

Professor Holland, who took-up his new role earlier this month, said: “I am excited to be joining the Kent and Medway Medical School. It is an excellent opportunity and, in my opinion, it offers some of the most inspiring opportunities for a new medical school following the recent funding announcement for the expansion of medical places.

“We have two great, but different universities partnering together and bringing the best of all they offer to the medical school. In addition, we will be supported by the excellent Brighton and Sussex Medical School, who are one of the top medical schools for student satisfaction, something which we can learn from and offer to our own students.”

“KMMS will play a unique and distinctive role supporting the NHS in Kent and Medway. It will help address some systemic workforce issues in the region, offering training and development opportunities which will help attract and retain medical professionals, as well as ensure that our talented local students have access to medical training through our commitment to widening participation and opening up access to medical education.”

In March this year the Government and Health Education England announced that a joint bid by Canterbury Christ Church University and the University of Kent to establish a medical school was successful.

The KMMS will be Kent and Medway’s first ever medical school, bringing together the existing centres of excellence in health and medical education provided by the two universities, and local healthcare organisations, to offer a new model of patient-focused medical education. It will also be an essential part of the solution to the challenge of recruiting and retaining medical professionals for the region.

The medical school will open in September 2020, offering 100 undergraduate medical places on a yearly basis. The five year undergraduate programme will be taught at the Canterbury campuses of both university partners with medical placements within Primary, Community and Secondary Care across Kent and Medway.